Hi there, I have been following Peter's A eating plan for the last 6 years, with brilliant results. I also use the ABO eating plan exclusively in my clinic, also with very good results. My question is academic...I am currently conducting a research project on patient compliance to diet/exercise programs and whether these programs lead to longer term lifestyle changes and ultimate health rewards. I am somewhat biased in my beliefs on this subject, but sadly my own experience needs to be backed up with other studies as well. Can you please direct me to any such studies on the ABO diet? I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you very much. Regards, Cally (P.S. Please send Peter my best wishes, I admire his work and know how important it is. I met him during his visit to Queensland a few years ago).

Hello, Cally ~ I'm posting your question here to alert Peter to your request ~ as a nonprofessional, I do not have his access to resources and research that you are seeking. I do want to thank you so much for sharing your experiences on the BTD plan and with your patients! I'm heartened each time I hear of another clinician using Peter's work in professional practice. If you have a minute or two, I'd love to see your clinic in our Practitioner Registry ~ here is the link to the entry form, or just drop me a message and I'll be glad to enter it for you. Once again, kudos on your pioneering work there in Queensland!

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Is there a link between blood type B positive and candida? I have both. The reason why I ask is the foods I'm supposed to eat as a B and candida patient overlap. Eugenia

Hi, Eugenia ~ Type O individuals, and all nonsecretors, are disadvantaged with a susceptibility to this condition ~ it's possible you are a nonsecretor, who appear to make up at least 50% of Candidiasis sufferers although they represent only 15-20% of the general population. I'm glad the food sheets you've been given fit well with the B plan. The customary GP recommendations are not designed along blood type needs, but rather for "anyone" with a Candida overgrowth, so in this case you're fortunate! Please let me know if you want any further suggestions for intestinal re-balancing. I hope your condition improves, and soon!!

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Heidi, The question and your response on August 20 made me think of a similar question I have had concerning fish. LR4YT recommends that frozen fish should be avoided, as the content of polyamines in it is much higher than fresh fish. I have found it difficult to locate a good local source of fresh beneficial fish for my families O blood type. I have found a very good and convenient source of frozen cod fillets that I have been using for several months. I really like the packaging because the fillets are individually sealed and frozen so I can easily thaw what I need for the next day. My question is am I better off eating or not eating the frozen fish if I don't have a source of fresh fish? In other words, how serious is the polyamine issue in frozen fish assuming that I am very compliant with my BTD and eat the frozen fish maybe on average once every other day? Thank you Don

Hi, Don! The fish you're eating has the oils and proteins intact, and I want you to keep eating it because it is an important part of your O diet. :-) Anyone who depends on frozen fish (and there are many of us who do), just take a teaspoon of black cherry or elderberry concentrate before the meal ~ routs out those pesky polyamines a treat. If you have some ProBerry3 liquid on hand, take a teaspoon of that. Tastiest flu-chaser and polyamine hound ever designed. :-D By the way, I got your note about the secretor tests for your family. Wow, ALL type O Rhesus-negative secretors! You are blessed indeed!

~:-> ( << does that little face look a bit envious? :-D )

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Dr. D'Adamo, I have recently been diagnosed with Crohn's disease. According to the book "Controlling Crohn's disease the natural way" by Virginia Harper, who healed herself from this disease (20 years without any symptoms), a good option for me would be to start a microbiotic diet (that is the way she got over the disease). The microbiotic diet emphasises the use of sea vegetables + fish, but avoids meat all together. I am a -type- O and am really wonderong if meat would decelarate my healing process, because it is very difficult to digest for me at this moment, my digestive tract is quite sensitive. Could you please give me some advice on this. Thank you so much for your time! I more than appreciate it! Catheline

Hello, Catheline ~~ If the diet mentioned in the book (which I have not read) is "microbiotic," not "macrobiotic," then I am not familiar with it. Do bear in mind that the vast majority of off-the-shelf how-to-cure-yourself protocols do not take into account the biological diversity of the human population. Virginia Harper may be a type A or AB secretor. You may be a type O nonsecretor. Her approach may have worked wonders for her and yet do little or nothing for you. However, type Os are encouraged to eat fish, seaweeds, green vegetables, with small quantities of whole grains such as rice. Be sure to get adequate fresh flax and olive oil each day, following the portions and frequencies listed in Live Right 4 Your Type. Use her protocol, but observe the type O avoids. Eat as much fish (and eggs) as you need. Also, you may find the advice I passed on regarding colitis in a previous column to be highly effective in your case. Scroll down to the portion printed in blue ~ that's the relevant part. Good health to you, Catheline, and please let me know what works or doesn't work for you. Take care! :-)

It is soothing to the digestive tract, and good for stimulating digestive juices. For those reasons, it can peripherally aid weight loss through promoting good digestion. :-)

Hi, Firstly thank you for a wonderful book! But I'm a bit confused with some things: Are soya products bad for type B? Can I TYPE b) have soya lecitin, soya beans, soya sauce and flour?And what about Tofu ice-cream? Another question. Can type As' eat eggs /whites/ yolks? The website says neutral but one of the recipies (vineager free mayonaisse) says AVOID egg yolks? Is eating just the whites a good alternate? The book and the website differ from eachother sometimes, which one is more up to date? Thank you very much for your time in helping me. sylvia

Yes, soy products are not recommended for type Bs due to a recent discovery that soy has an adverse effect on the integrity of the B antigen. Eggs are neutral for type As ~ the caveat in the recipe is based upon an older generation of blood group food lists. The website contains the most recently-updated information. :-)

Hello, Mary ~ The small, individual blood type book is the one to follow if you do not plan to find out your secretor status. It has the latest listings. Thanks for writing!

Giving up wheat is a HUGE challenge. Can you make some recommendations for some "Bready" or "Pasta style" Brands? Cathy

Sure! "Food for Life" and "Nature's Path" for breads (Ezekiel, Essene, and 100% single-grain breads among which to choose based on your type) ~ Pastariso and DeBoles Organic rice pastas (spaghetti and a number of other shapes!). My very demanding type A, Bryan, insists that the rice pastas taste much better than the wheat-based commercial brands... he wouldn't dream of eating that semolina stuff anymore, just because of the flavor! So, I'll bet you won't be disappointed there. :-)

I've been cooking and eating charcoal grilled fish and smoked meats for 30 years - mainly stuff like slow smoked beef and grilled fish of wide varieties. I'm O. Assuming I stick with Type appropriate meats and fish, what are the BTD Diet ramifications of smoking them, if any? Our household has all 4 types represented and I do nearly all the cooking, so I'm interested in the effects on all 4 groups, not just O. Emmett

Hi, Emmett ~ Peter has posted his views on smoked/cured foods in the past, which I referred to in my Halloween column. The advice applies generally to all types, but since you're cooking for one of those demanding four-type families (HOW do you do it??), I'll add that types A and AB are statistically more prone to stomach cancer than type O or B, so I'd try to limit them to one smoked meal per month, and Os & Bs to one per week for health reasons -- just to be on the safe side. And I commend you for rising to the 4-type daily cooking challenge! :-D

Anna! Yes, it is very, very common. And it's a great sign! Your body is thanking you for your new diet! Now it has the opportunity to get rid of all the old poisons and impacted, dead matter lining your intestinal tract. In fact, it's an indicator of good health to have a bowel movement soon after eating in any case. Congratulations on getting rid of wheat and dairy, by the way! No small feat. These changes are just the beginning of the benefits of this diet... do savor every new development and "surprise" positive side-effect. and write in with them, OK? :-D

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Hi, I've read your books and have been on the diet for 3 weeks. I am an O+ and have given up wheat and dairy products. I've been mostly a vegetable and fruit with protein person for years. I am about 15 pounds overweight and have lost about 5 pounds. When social events occur, I go off the diet and seem to gain back some of the weight and then lose again when I get back on. I don't seem to be going much beyond the 5 pounds. Also the book Live Right 4 Your Type and the little book for Type O Foods and Supplements have different lists of foods. Please advise if (1) losing slowly is reasonable and (2) what the difference is between the two food lists. Thank you. Winona

Hi, Winona ~ Well, three weeks isn't long at all. This diet works from deep areas outward, and sometimes weight loss is the last step in that process. Going on, then off, then back on any diet will make it more difficult to attain your goals, partly because it exacerbates insulin resistance. The five pounds you lose once takes far less time to go than the five pounds you're trying to lose for the 15th time. However, here's a way to step on the gas a little: EXERCISE! As I am wont to repeat myself, Exercise is Fully 50% of the Plan! And while you are waiting for that bodyweight to leave, check how your clothes fit. You can be gaining muscle and losing fat (and a pants size or two) even though the scale seems stuck. :-) About the food lists: Live Right is designed on two different subtypes ~ secretor and nonsecretor. The "Little Books'" lists really are hybrids, formulated to balance the benefits for those who may not know or plan to find out their secretor status. Hope this helps!!

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Hi, I am type O , dont know secretor status. Ive been on diet for almost a week and feel tired and alittle light headed. have lost 3 lbs. I take 6 mg ativan a day for panic attacks. i am also allergic or at least very sensitive to b vitamins so am only taking calcium mag suppliment and a oliveleaf extract capsule daily. walk 40 min daily except sun. I am concerned about the lightheadedness iit makes me feel not well. My pulse is 62 today and is normally 70 i am 61 and have low BP too 100/60, this is normal for me, I see a Naturapath who prescribed the diet. But hasnt had a lot of patients on it yet. Any info much appreciated. Thanks, Boni

Hello, Boni! Another newcomer to the Blood Type Diets! Welcome!! I'm not familiar with "ativan," so please ask the doctor who prescribed it if lightheadedness is a side effect. The drug aside, you may not be eating enough! You didn't mention how much or what you eat, but as a type O with naturally low blood pressure myself, I can tell you that eating a good protein-based breakfast (and lunch) is a major key to feeling good all day ~ and that drinking a couple of glasses of water between meals is great for energy levels. Let me know more about what you're eating ~ what kinds of grain if any, anything with sugar in it, etc. Take care, and keep with it! This plan will definitely come through for you!!!

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Dear Heidi, I enjoy your column immensely and read it every day - your positive attitude is wonderful. I submitted a question about two or three months ago and have yet to receive an answer. I know you're up to your eye balls in questions yet to be answered, but please let me know by e-mail if I need to seek help somewhere else. I had previously submitted the question to Dr. D'Adamo, but then he had to quit taking questions in order to free him for writing his new book, so by now I'm really anxious for some answers! In case you need to look up my question again, I had asked for some advice on what supps to take or foods to eat to improve my very unhealthy finger nails - they have pronounced vertical ridges and split easily, also the cuticles are very dry and hang nails have always been a problem. Inlcuded in the information I submitted was my blood type, secretor status and a list of supplements I'm currently taking. Believe me, I'm more concerned about what the status of my finger nails indicates regarding my over-all health than I am about how they look, although pretty fingernails would be nice : ) Thanks for your consideration, Becky

:-D Becky, thank you so much! Yes, I'm only caught up about three-quarters of the way through August, although I do sort in some more recent questions ~~ but I'm stepping up the pace!! :-}

You wrote earlier: In August of 2000 I had a mineral check done through Great Smokies Diagnostic Laboratory. The results indicated lower than reference range levels of chromium, cobalt, and manganese. In addition to adhereing to the diet, I've been supplementing with Methyl 12plus, Phytocal, Polyvite, Deflect, Fucus, Ester-C, organic flax oil, magnesium with silica, and have recently added horsetail shave grass and gotu kola. I've seen no improvement.

I agree that the nails are more than just decorations! Becky, could I impose upon you to write once more? Post a message to me containing three or four days' listings of what you eat and when. Note what your exercise activities and schedule are, and when you normally sleep & wake. How long have your nails been like this, and do you remember any triggering event? I'm posting all this here because I'm sure others will write in with some personal experience and advice! Between all of us, we'll get it cleared up, don't you worry!! :-)

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As a Type B person, I've been following Dr D'Adamo's directives with the Membrane Fluidizer Cocktail most mornings for several years. I recently purchased the Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia, and was surprised to see under the listing for Lecithin(p.518) that type B's should AVOID it! Is this something new? Now I'm confused! L.S.

AH! That error is MINE! :-) In copy-editing the food lists, I changed that entry, on the certain assumption that "soy granules" meant "lecithin." It did not mean lecithin, it referred to an old cereal listing. Well, it slipped through! Lecithin is fine for everyone ~ we've corrected it in the TYPEbase 3® database. Hope this alleviates the confusion, and my apologies!

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Tell me about horseradish. I understand it is good for me as an O. However, all the recipes I find call for prepared horseradish which has the vinegar in it. Any suggestions? I have a big ugly root in my refrigerator vegetable bin and am not sure what to do with it! Anyway to preserve it without vinegar - like freezing maybe? Thank you. melinda

:-) That big ugly root is what real home cooks and chefs use for horseradish! Scrub it off and use a grater to add however much you need to a dish. Warning - keep your face (eyes!) well away from the grating process, as this stuff packs some chemical "heat." It does not withstand freezing, but the fridge is fine, as long as you keep the root moist. Fridge air tends to be quite dry, and horseradish prefers 90-95% humidity with a temperature of 32 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit for longer-term storage. It is a fabulous taste... enjoy it!!

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Dear Heidi, You have probably thought of this already, but could it be possible to have a TV Cooking Show, preferably with a high profile chef with street cred (such as Jamie Oliver), for instance. You would provide hime with the recipes and theoretical background so that hopefully he (or whomever is the talking head) would present them in a convincing manner. Cheerio, Jenny

Oh, I dream of it, dear. Anyone "close-in" with one of the TV cookery chefs or management? I imagine that some market-minded soul is already planning such a show, or at least will feature the BTD at some point on a program now running. If anyone has a lead we might follow up, or needs our support, just sing out! :-) thanks, Jenny!!